1. Fire Season 2018, Fire Effects on Soils and Overview of the Four Forest Restoration Initiative
WESTCAS Fall Conference
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
Dick Fleishman
US Forest Service
Operations Coordinator Four-Forest Restoration Initiative

2. Today we want to:
Quick overview of 2018 fire season on National Forest System land in Arizona
Effect of fire on soils
Give an overview of the Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI)
Challenges and successes
Conclusion

3. 2018 Wildfire Season-Summary National Forest System Lands
Fires (Human)
Acres (Human)
Fire (Lightning)
Acres (Lightning)
Total Fires
Total Acres
A-S
124
5,070
104
9,526
228
14,596
Coronado 53
8,030 19
382 72
8,412
Coconino 84
16,841
174
9,556
258
26,397
Kaibab 17 7
119
8,828
136
8,835
Prescott 31
344 27
8,530 58
8,874
Tonto 68
146 52
10,244
120
10,390
TOTAL
377
30,438
495
47,066
872
77,504
FOREST
Fires (Human)
Acres (Human)
Fires (Lightning)
Acres (Lightning)
Total Fires
Total Acres
A-S 47
69,285 77
5,015
123
74,300
Coronado 40
48,989 36
19,555 76
68,544
Coconino 91
5,289
133
21,643
224
26,932
Kaibab 19
248 82
10,976
101
11,224
Prescott 26
6,488 22
3,589 48
10,077
Tonto 93
6,511
15,716
170
22,227
TOTAL
315
136,809
426
76,493
741
213,302
the most destructive was the Tinder fire on the Coconino National Forest that 16,309 acres and destroyed 33 primary residences and 54 minor structures. Compared to averages from , we were below average.

4. Fire Effects on Soils

5. Fire Effects on Soils

6. Fire Effects on Soils

8. Effects from Wildfires to Drinking Water
Source water contamination
Increased sediment/debris flows to reservoir
Loss of storage capacity
Debris in reservoirs
Bottom Line---Increased cost to deliver and treat water

9. Four Forest Restoration Initiative (4FRI)
Selected as one of first 10 Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Projects in
To restore ecological resilience and function across 2.4 million acres of northern Arizona’s ponderosa pine forest and to attract appropriately sized industry to the region.
4FRI Strategic Plan outlines goal of 50,000 acres of mechanical harvesting and 60-70,000 acres of prescribed/wildfire acres treated per year.
To meet the goal of 50,000 acres of mechanical treatment, we need to be as efficient as possible

10. Why so big? Ecological Legal and Socio-Political
Increasing size of severe wildfires
Safe reintroduction of fire to landscape
Comprehensive watershed management
Legal and Socio-Political
NEPA planning efficiencies
Community protection

11. What have we done so far? Mechanical Harvest Fire on the landscape
Performance Measure
Unit of measure
actual reported
Acres of forest vegetation established
Acres
55,721
Manage noxious weeds and invasive plants
Acre
17,167
Acres of water or soil resources protected, maintained or improved to achieve desired watershed conditions.
220,743
Acres of lake habitat restored or enhanced
103
Miles of stream habitat restored or enhanced
Miles
94.0
Acres of terrestrial habitat restored or enhanced
581,455
Acres of rangeland vegetation improved
127,369
Miles of high clearance system roads receiving maintenance
2,840.0
Miles of passenger car system roads receiving maintenance
5,299.0
Miles of road decommissioned
78.9
Miles of passenger car system roads improved
431.0
Miles of high clearance system road improved
267.3
Number of stream crossings constructed or reconstructed to provide for aquatic organism passage
Number 1
Miles of system trail maintained to standard
1,002.3
Miles of system trail improved to standard
158.0
Miles of property line marked/maintained to standard
98.7
Number of priority acres treated annually for native pests on Federal lands
733
What have we done so far?
Mechanical Harvest
Sold 196,891 acres in timber contracts
Harvested 118,964 to date
Sold 1,241,596 CCF and 2,025,113 Green tons for bio-energy production
Fire on the landscape
Prescribed Fire and Wildfire that meets land management plan objectives on 442,952 acres (through FY 2017)
Other Restoration
Summary by Fiscal Year
Acres awarded in all contracts
Acres completed in all contracts
Acres remaining all sales
Fiscal Year 2010 (Oct 1, to Sept 30, 2010)
10,882
13,265
Fiscal Year 2011 (Oct 1, to Sept 30, 2011)
17,638
16,034
Fiscal Year 2012 (Oct 1, to Sept 30, 2012)
10,063
8,653
Fiscal Year 2013 (Oct 1, to Sept 30, 2013)
25,479
15,469
Fiscal Year 2014 (Oct 1, 2013 to Sept 30, 2014)
22,069
13,585
Fiscal Year 2015 (Oct 1, 2014 to Sept 30, 2015)
38,819
14,550
Fiscal Year 2016 (Oct 1, 2015 to Sept 30, 2016)
22,137
11,569
Fiscal Year 2017 (Oct 1, 2016 to Sept 30, 2017)
32,514
13,108
Fiscal Year 2018 (Oct 1, 2017 to Sept 30, 2018)
17,290
12,731
196,891
118,964
91,161

12. 4FRI Challenges and Successes
Accelerating restoration
Full restoration treatments and biomass
Smoke it get in you eyes

13. 4FRI Challenges and Successes-Accelerating Restoration
Forest Service and 4FRI stakeholders have a desire to accelerate restoration
Challenges from this include:
Getting more mechanical harvest and mill capacity on the west side of the project
Keeping established industry on the east side of the project.
Smoke and biomass.
Getting comprehensive restoration in place and funded.
How are we getting to success?
Forest Service has accelerated mechanical harvest offerings on the east side of the project area.
Looking at placement of treatments using optimization based on economics and restoration need.
Forest Product Modernization
Looking at tools to provide long-term stability for investors---agreements, long-term contracts.
Northern Arizona Forest Fund and Comprehensive Implementation Work Group.
More work to be done
Understanding economics of our product mix better.
ID’ing and implementing business practice efficiencies.
Using agreements and Pilot authorities to test new ways of doing business.

14. 4FRI Challenges and Successes-Full Restoration Treatments and Biomass
Full restoration treatments includes treating in all size classes in young-aged trees
Challenges from this include:
Small diameter material and harvest residue have no value and does not have a wide-spread market based solution.
Forest Service manual direction for forest product removal is based on that product having value.
Forest Service has limited understanding of the business/market side of forest products.
How are we getting to success?
Existing industry capacity exists in the White Mountains to treat biomass.
Better understanding of economics and tradeoffs through partnerships with research and industry.
Looking at new long-term contract in 4FRI to provide product reliability.
More work to be done
To subsidize or not to subsidize?
Cracking the biomass nut.
Valuing ecosystem services.

15. 4FRI Challenges and Successes-Smoke, it gets in your eyes, and everywhere else
Full restoration is not only harvesting, but it is also re-introducing fire
Challenges from this include:
Public Health issues.
Public Safety issues.
Fire and mechanical thinning conflicts.
How are we getting to success?
We have been very successful using prescribed and wildfire to accomplish acres
Burning bigger blocks and fewer days.
More work to be done
The more we burn, the less emissions we have.
Education and messaging.

16. Conclusions
We have been successful with acres of restoration accomplished— however, it is more in the fire arena than the mechanical thinning arena.
We have not established a restoration based economy across the entire project area that will allow us to get at the mechanical harvest acres that we have planned for.
Biomass removal will continue to be an issue and will take all of our efforts to solve.
Managers need to fully understand the effects of smoke and how these need to be mitigated.
We have been successful doing landscape scale NEPA.
Collaboration has worked well---it still needs work from both the FS and stakeholders to make it even better.
Our expectations always seem to exceed our reality.

17. Questions???